NORWICH – The late Dr. Thomas F. Manley, better known as Dr. TF, is once again being honored as one of the Norwich's most influential people early on in its beginnings.

Recently, a portrait of Dr. Manley that was painted by the artist Joseph Earl Schrack, was donated to the Chenango County Historical Society, by Dr. Manley's grandson Thomas Manley III.

“The only thing I'm interested in are protecting the portrait, since I live in Germany and would hate to have something happen to it in transit. The reasons I put the piece on loan are multifaceted. First and foremost, I think it's kind of selfish for me to spirit the picture away to a country where only one person would benefit from its. If it's in Norwich, there is a higher likelihood that people who want to see it, can see it,” said Manley III.

Dr. Manley was born in 1874, and more than 100 years later his mark and the role he played in the history of Norwich can still be felt throughout the city.

Dr. Manley is responsible for founding Chenango Memorial Hospital, as well as the Manley House on South Broad Street, which was then his office, but has since been converted to housing Nelson and Flanagan law offices.

“He is really known as the father of our hospital. He was the district surgeon for the New York, Ontario and Western Railroad and the Delaware Lackawanna and Western Railroad for many years,” said Dr. Manley's cousin Patricia Smith.

His estate was long ago liquidated after his death, however, some of the legacies he left behind still exist in his hometown community, as well as the Syracuse community.

According to a previous article by Dr. Manley's other grandson Patrick Manley he explains how his grand father, Dr. Manley was enrolled in Syracuse University in 1897 when he received one of the first ever baseball scholarships offered by their athletic department, he went on to play four years of varsity baseball on that scholarship while attending medical school there.